The financial strains of Christmas are enormous, according to the boss of Nottingham Credit Union, but some people were saving for the big day since as long ago as April.

Ella Ferris is the general manager of the union, a not-for-profit co-operative which helps with loans, savings and financial planning, often for people without a spotless credit history.

She said the pressures parents can be under are huge, with children asking for more and more expensive presents, and that the current economic climate is exacerbating the strain.

Ella Ferris, from Nottingham Credit Union

Speaking to the Post, she said: “The strains aren’t just enormous, but they have such a long-lasting effect on people.

“It does vary a lot, because when you look at the average that people spend, it’s about £800, and when you think about if you are having to borrow that amount of money, if you went to one of the well-known loan companies, you could be paying almost the same again in interest.

“If you’re spreading that over the next year, that’s about £30 a week.”

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“I’ve got two young children, and the pressure from them to buy X-boxes and Nintendo Switches, but these things are around £250. It’s very difficult from the amount that my parents were expected to spend on me.

“Around one in 20 families miss household bills in order to buy things for Christmas.”

She said that the co-operative has specialist teams to help people who have taken money from loan sharks, and that they have heard ‘real horror stories’ about families who have got into debt at Christmas.

“They often think ‘it will be better in the New Year, and I will start saving and be able to pay this, but that has huge knock-on effects, and stops them being able to pay other things, so you just keep spiralling.”

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The organisation has offices in Maid Marian Way in the city centre and Clumber street in Mansfield.

Since April, the credit union has seen hundreds of people saving a total of £45,000 a month for Christmas.

Ms Ferris added: “Some people come to us year after year for loans, so we say to them instead of just paying back the loan, they can put some in an account, so they don’t have to borrow as much next time.

“It’s just one day, and people put a lot of pressure on themselves. But not everyone can have the perfect John Lewis Christmas. Without wanting to sound like Scrooge, it’s not worth getting into financial problems over."